The Philadelphia Housing Authority celebrated the completion
of the first phase of the agency's Sharswood/Blumberg
Transformation. The ceremony took place at North 24th and
Oxford Streets, across the street from the former site of the
high-rise Blumberg Apartments. PHA President and CEO Kelvin
Jeremiah (far left) was joined by former residents who cut the
ceremonial ribbon with C
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PHA President and CEO Kelvin Jeremiah welcomed
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney at the grand opening ceremony for
Blumberg Apartments Phase I in the Sharswood neighborhood. The
Mayor said it's important to protect the rights of residents in
communities that are undergoing renewal, as well as protecting the
neighborhood culture. Residents of the former Blumberg Apartments
complex have the right to return to the area as PHA completes
construction of new homes.

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Philadelphia Housing Authority President and CEO
Kelvin Jeremiah (center) handed out bricks from the old Blumberg
Apartments to former residents who will move into new homes
constructed in the Sharswood neighborhood. PHA celebrated the
completion of the first phase of the agency's Sharswood/Blumberg
Transformation. The ceremony took place at North 24th and
Oxford Streets, across the street from the former site of the
high-rise Blumberg Apartments. PHA Commissioner Asia Coney (center)
who led the effort to make sure that residents could return
to the neighborhood looks on.

﻿

(PHILADELPHIA-November 16, 2016) - The
Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) today celebrated the
completion of the first phase of the agency's Sharswood/Blumberg
Transformation, PHA's most ambitious and dynamic neighborhood
renewal effort in over a decade. The ceremony took place at
North 24th and Oxford Streets, across the street from the former
site of the high-rise Blumberg Apartments.

"The revitalization of this long-neglected neighborhood will
contribute in a major way to the transformation of North
Philadelphia," said Mayor Jim Kenney. "PHA has successfully brought
together the federal, state and city governments, as well as
private partners to reinvigorate Sharswood. Ultimately, we
hope to see a thriving community, including business formation
along the nearby Ridge Avenue corridor."

Fifty-seven affordable rental homes were built on three parcels
of vacant land owned by PHA adjacent to the site where the Blumberg
Apartments formerly stood. All the high-rises except for one senior
building were demolished last March. The other two parcels in the
first phase are located at the corners of 22nd and Jefferson
Streets, and 24th and Jefferson Streets. The housing authority is
investing more than $22 million to build these units.

"Today we are delivering on the first part of our promise to
this neighborhood to create sustainable, energy efficient,
affordable housing, while increasing critical amenities to make
Sharswood a neighborhood of choice," said PHA President and CEO
Kelvin A. Jeremiah. "I'd like to thank HUD Secretary Julian Castro,
Mayor Kenney, Council President Clarke, all of our
Sharswood/Blumberg Transformation Plan partners, and especially the
PHA residents and the entire community for their past and
continuing support of these efforts."

"The community-based approach to planning this development is
why we are hopeful it will succeed," Council President Darrell L.
Clarke said. "When residents have confidence that their concerns
are being heard and that they will be supported, they will work
just as hard as the builders and engineers to maximize every
opportunity affordable housing can provide: a safe place to raise
children, get an education, get job training, and work toward
self-sufficiency."

In December 2013, HUD awarded a Choice Neighborhoods Initiative
(CNI) Planning Grant to PHA. The $500,000 planning grant
provided the agency with the opportunity to create a transformation
plan for the redevelopment of the area stretching north of Girard
College, south of Cecil B. Moore Avenue, and between 19th and 27th
Streets. More than 40 planning meetings with residents and
stakeholders took place to create a blueprint for a thriving,
prosperous, self-reliant community.

"Congratulations to the PHA team and all the partners who have
worked diligently to bring the Sharswood/Blumberg transformation
plan to life," said Jane C.W. Vincent, HUD's Mid-Atlantic Regional
Administrator. "We are seeing the results of life-changing efforts
like the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative and the Rental Assistance
Demonstration program, which have given a significant boost to the
revitalization of this neighborhood and the preservation of
affordable housing."

This development is PHA's first Rental Assistance Demonstration
(RAD) program project. RAD is the U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development's rental housing preservation strategy, allowing
public housing authorities and owners of HUD-assisted properties to
leverage public and private financing to maintain affordable
housing in communities.

The Sharswood/Blumberg Transformation Plan has 10 phases and
will yield over 1,200 total housing units with a mix of affordable
and market-rate, rental, and homeownership units. The
restoration of the Ridge Avenue commercial corridor is a major goal
of the plan, with businesses that will be anchored by PHA's
headquarters and a supermarket. It will take 5-7 years for
the agency to complete the transformation of the community with a
total investment estimated at slightly more than $500 million.

The plan represents an alignment of resources and partners
across all levels of government: Federal, in the CNI grant
from HUD; State, in a Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) award;
and City, in both a HOME grant from the Office of Housing and
Community Development (OHCD), and support from the Office of the
Mayor and the City Council President. The housing authority is also
working with Public Health Management Corporation and Project HOME
to provide health and wellness services to the community.